Trademarks and Trade Dress Trade dress refers to the visual appearance of a product or its packaging that convey the source of the product to consumers. Trade dress protection is intended to protect consumers from packaging or appearance of products designed to imitate other products, to prevent consumers from buying one product under the mistaken …Read More
The Difference Between Copyright Assignments And Licenses There are two ways that a copyright owner can transfer some or all of his or her copyright rights: through a license or an assignment. In an assignment of copyright rights, the owner sells his or her ownership rights to another party and has no control over how …Read More
Written Copyright Assignments Required From Independent Contractors To obtain copyright assignments from independent contractors who perform work for you (including photographers, web or graphics designers, copyrighters, etc.) this copyright assignment must be in writing to comply with federal copyright law. If you do not obtain a writing from the copyright owner assigning you the copyright, …Read More
Non-Compete Agreement Basics Simply stated, a non-compete agreement is an agreement where one party agrees not to compete with another party within a certain business or industry. A non-compete agreement is usually found within employment contracts where the employee agrees that she or he will not start a business to compete with the employer or …Read More
Trademark Basics Even if you don’t know what a trademark is, you’d still probably recognize one. In fact, by reading this blog, there’s a good chance you may even recognize a trademark within your field of vision. According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, a trademark is, “a word, phrase, symbol or design, …Read More
Taxation of Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) A limited liability company (LLC) is a business entity created by state law, the Michigan Limited Liability Company Act of 1993. After forming an LLC you must take certain steps to keep your business in compliance with this law. State LLC taxes and fee Michigan taxes LLC profits the …Read More
Partnerships: Rules and FAQ People or companies that conduct business together, but have not filed any formal organizational documents to obtain a corporation or other state-issued entity may be classified as a partnership, whether they intend to be one or not. Those can raise issues and about partnership transactions and potential liabilities that the participants …Read More
Business owners and customers alike are often confused when it comes to a business’s name. A primary source of confusion is the use of a business’s “entity name” vs. its “fictitious name” (often referred to as its “d/b/a” or “doing business as” name). This article will clarify the difference between the two. Business Entity Name …Read More
